Twycross and Mosby

I was interested in the point Mosby brought up in a recent thread about the chap named Twycross being the first on the scene after MvR's plane came down and heard him utter his last words. I think he has a few challengers.

In a unit history I read a few years ago it stated that Captain Adams and Signillar Wright both from the 44th Battalion AIF were first on the scene and make no mention of Richthfen speaking. The following is from the battalion history
"Wright states that Richthofen was still sitting in his plane, still with his wonderful pink complexion and not a sign as to his cause of death"

while CEW Bean in his volume 5 of the Official Australian history in his appendix of Richthofen states that a Lt Fraser, intelligence officer with the 42nd Battalion was with the first half dozen that reached the plane and also make no mention of MvR speaking or uttering his final words.
The following is from Beans history
"Lt Fraser, running up with the first half dozen, undid Richthofen's safety belt, had him lifted out, and examining his papers, found his name. A signaller of the 3rd Division writes :We of course didn't know who he was, but we saw he was dead, so lifted him out and laid him on the grass"

These men, the first at the plane would not have left out of their story something fantastic like MvR uttering his final words to them.

Though good luck to Twycross if it's true.

Cheers

[Vin]

Who was the first to arrive ? Was it

Gunner Ernest Twycross of the Royal Garrison Artillery.
Or
Captain Adams and Signaler Wright both from the 44th Battalion AIF
Or
Lt Fraser, intelligence officer with the 42nd Battalion AIF and 5 others
Or someone else ?

If Twycross was not the first to arrive, then the reliability of his revelation to his son, 48 years after the event, that he heard Von Richthofen’s last words, is even more dubious.


Vin

[Ginger.]

The thick plottens.

[Vin]

If I had been any good at Maths, I would have become an engineer. 52 years.


Vin

There is a very reasonable explanation. Franks and Bennett explain at page 61 that Lt Turner of the Royal Garrison Artillery, instructed Gunner Twycross to to climb out of their observation trench "and take the German pilot prisoner before he could set his plane on fire". Twycross ran over to the plane and heard Ricthofen say his 3 words. Then, "Gunner Twycross, smelling the petrol, hearing the ticking sound made by hot metal as it cools, and seeing several soldiers running towards the aeroplane, prudently returned to his post."

In other words Twycross had come and left before the others arrived.

[Ginger.]

Before there was a thumble of runder from tne petrol tank?

Twycross must have been a speed demon.
He raced to the plane, had time to see MvR was not going to torch his plane, heard him utter his last words then raced back before anyone saw him.

He should have been in the 100m at the Olympics!

As the people I mentioned were there straight away I have to say that his claim though possible is very dubious.

It's good to see that there are challengers out there and people who don't take what's written in a book as the holy gospel.

But as none of us were there it would be hard to prove that Twycross was bullknitting.
Though I agree with Vin that Twycrosses claim of Richthofen speaking is way dubious considering the amount of people who all seemed to be at the plane first.

Hutchie

Peter

I find your comments hugely amusing given that we've been assured by the pro-Popkin people on this thread that the book by Franks and Bennett is the definitive work on the topic. If you're now saying that Franks and Bennett is not "holy gospel" as you put it, let me assure you that you'll have no argument from me. That was the whole point I was trying to make.

I have not seen any of the pro Popkin people from this thread assure anyone that the Franks & Bennett book is the definitive work on the topic.

It is possible, however, that I missed reading such a post.

I have also not seen where Peter has ever changed his opinion or the tone of his posts regarding the same book.

Regards,

MDD